Øvre Vinstra
Vinstra power station is a reservoir power station on the well-known and beautiful Vinstra watercourse. The drainage basin covers the Lakes of Bygdin, Vinstern, Heimdalsvatnet, Kaldfjorden and Øyangen. The power station is located on Lake Slangen in Skåbu in Nord-Fron Municipality. The picture shows the outdoor establishment. The power station is located inside the mountain.
High head
From Lake Øyangen the water is carried through a 7.5 km long operation tunnel down to the basin in Finnbølhaugen. The water is then led from the basin down to the power station through a 460 m long penstock
The power station
The power station itself is established in the mountain near Lake Slangen. A 940 m long access tunnel leads into the power station. The tail race tunnel from the power station is 1200 m long.
Øvre Vinstra Power station was built at the end of the 1950s, the time when the development of power stations was at a peak in Norway. The constructions entailed several challenges because of the simple equipment and the long tunnels.
Regulation installations
In the Vinstra watercourse, the regulation installations is a comprehensive system, offering great challenges for those who are responsible for operation and maintenance. During the winter, people who carry out necessary snow measurement and inspection of the regulation installations have to cope with harsh and unpredictable weather conditions in the vast mountain areas.
